Gen 15:1
After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.": Who is the word of the LORD? It's Jesus! In a vision, Jesus came to Abram and told him not to be afraid because Jesus is Abram's shield. We can know that as we go through this crazy world, God will direct us down the best path, if we follow Him. Doesn't mean in any way that life will be easy, but it will be what's best for us.
Gen 15:2
But Abram said, "Lord GOD, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?": This is a good question. God had promised in Gen 12:2-3 that He would make Abram a great nation. Abram was asking God how this was possible since his heir was not even his own son.
Gen 15:3
Then Abram said, "Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!": God promised Abram that Abram would be a great nation (Gen 12:2-3). Abram is pointing out that this couldn't be since he doesn't have an heir from himself. The current heir was an adopted servant.
Gen 15:4
And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.": Who is the "word of the LORD?" Jesus! (John 1:1). And Jesus tells Abram that Abram will have a baby.
Gen 15:5
Then He brought him outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them." And He said to him, "So shall your descendants be.": Notice how "the word of the LORD" is now referred to as "He." More evidence that this is the preincarnate Christ. Jesus tells Abram that his descendants will be like the stars in number. Uncountable... Well, uncountable by humans!
Gen 15:6
And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness: This is the first time the bible says that Abram believed God, and that belief was counted as righeousness. Unfortunately, in our fallen state, believing God is the only way we can be righteous. The Bible tells us that our righteousnesses are as filthy rags (Isa 64:6). Only God can override our sinful nature and declare our belief as righteousness. We aren't actually righteous, but God declares us that way because we believe Him. Stange, and hardly understandable, but that's the way it is.
Gen 15:7
Then He said to him, "I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit it.": The call is recorded in Gen 12:1-4.
Gen 15:8
And he said, "Lord GOD, how shall I know that I will inherit it?": We know from Gen 15:6 that Abram believed God, so Abram is not questioning God here. Abram is asking for a sign.
Gen 15:9
So He said to him, "Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.": This ceremony that Abram is being told to gather these animals for is recorded in Jer 34:18-19. The three year old animals are in their prime, and only the best will do for God. When swearing an oath to the death, the two parties would split the animals down the middle and walk between the two halves.
Gen 15:10
Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, down the middle, and placed each piece opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in two: The custom was to cut the animals in two, and the two parties involved in the covenant would walk down the middle between the two halves. In Lev 1:14-17, we see that God didn't want the bird sacrifices split down the middle. Instead, they were de-winged, and their heads were twisted off. This is clearly the fingerprints of the same God who later establishes the law of sacrifice.
Gen 15:11
And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away: Leaving these dead animals rotting in the sun no doubt would attract vultures. Abram was waiting for God to do something with the animals Abram was told to gather, so he shooed them away. I actually find this verse peculiar, and am not entirely sure why it's included. Maybe it's intended to show that Abram waited a long time?
Gen 15:12
Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him: In Gen 2:21, God placed Adam in the same deep sleep when he used one of Adam's ribs to make Eve. This phrase "horror and great darkness" is very strange, and doesn't seem to fit. Why would Abram be terrified? The word for darkness can be translated as misery, so the verse likely means that Abram was terrified and miserable. חֲשֵׁיכָה חֲשֵׁכָה chăshêkâh chăshêykâh khash-ay-kaw', khash-ay-kaw' From H2821; darkness; figuratively misery: - darkness.
Gen 15:13
Then He said to Abram: "Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years: God prophecies that Abram's descendents will be afflicted by inhabitants of a foreign land. We know this land to be Egypt (Gen 50:22 to Exodus 14:30). That this follows after Abram is terrified and miserable, this has to be God comforting Abram.
Gen 15:14
And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions: God prophecies that He will judge Egypt, and that after their affliction, Israel will come out of Egypt with great possessions. This judgement came in the form of the plagues (Exodus 7:14 to Exodus 12:36), as well as the destruction of Egypt's army in the Red Sea (Exodus 14). The plundering was done without violence. The Egyptians wanted to get rid of the Jews, so the Egyptian people basically paid them to leave (Exo 12:31-36).
Gen 15:15
Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age: God tells Abram that he will die peacefully, and live a good long life. Essentially, this means that Abram's old age wouldn't be miserable.
Gen 15:16
But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete: We see the grace of God on display here. The reason why Abram doesn't inherit the land yet is because the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete. In other words, even though God knows what will happen in the future, He doesn't stop it from happening, but works His way around it. God doesn't pre-judge, even though He would be righteus in doing so. It seems that God lets people do what they want, then judges afterward. This means that we can always stop and repent. But we humans like to convince ourselves of our own righteousness, and that we don't need God, or we follow other gods and follow their righteousness. Even Satanists profess righteousness.
Gen 15:17
And it came to pass, when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces: While in his deep sleep, God fulfilled the covenant by passing through between the animals that had been divided. Notice that Abram didn't walk through them. This is a promise from God to Abram, and doesn't rely on Abram. It's one-sided. This is an unconditional promise to Abram.
Gen 15:18
On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates: Earlier in that day (Gen 15:4-5), God had promised Abram that Abram would have a child, and that his descendents would be innumerable. The river of Egypt is the Nile, and the great river is the Euphrates. The only question here is how far south does God's promise extend? If you search for Gen 15:18-21 map, most maps you'll see draw a straight line across from the southeastern most point of the Euphrates to the southernmost point of the Nile. Is that correct? Who knows, but it does seem kind of odd that the whole southern part of the land mass south of Israel including Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, etc isn't included.
Gen 15:19
the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites: The Kenites are believed to be the same tribe as the Midianites. They were wandering smiths. They lived in the southern part of modern Jordan, down to the Red Sea. The Kenezzites are mentioned in Gen 36:11. They're the descendents of Kenaz and lived in Edom. The Kadmonites were "a Canaanitish tribe which inhabited the north-eastern part of Palestine in the time of Abraham."
Gen 15:20
the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim: The Hittites were a warlike tribe that lived in the whole region between the Euphrates and Damascus. The Perizzites were nomadic peasants who were "inhabiting the fertile regions south and south-west of Carmel." The Rephaim were a tribe of Giants we have already discussed in Gen 14:5.
Gen 15:21
the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites: The Amorites were a Canaanite tribe that lived on the eastern side of the Dead Sea, along the Jordan river, up past the Sea of Galilee, to the base of Mt. Hermon. The Canaanites occupied most of the middle east including all of Palestine. The Jebusites lived between the Jordan river and the Mediterranean Sea.
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